The Book as Media: Key Approaches in Western Social Sciences and Humanities
https://doi.org/10.25205/1818-7919-2026-25-6-129-135
Abstract
This paper presents a theoretical and methodological review of prevailing approaches to conceptualizing the book as a form of media within Western social sciences and humanities. It analyzes three primary scholarly perspectives: media theory, historiography of the book, and a sociological framework that integrates the sociology of texts with the cultural history of reading and book production. Each approach exhibits distinct interpretations of the book’s role: as a medium influencing perception and culture (media theory), as a catalyst for social transformation (historiography), and as a constituent of communication systems distinguished by its materiality and social context (sociological perspective). This comprehensive review aims to elucidate methodological divergences and convergences in the scholarly understanding of the book as media.
Keywords
books as a media,
media theory,
history of the book,
sociology of the text,
print culture,
materiality of the text
Supporting agencies: The article was prepared under the research plan of the State Public Scientific Technological Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, project “Transformation of Book Culture in Social Communications of the 19th–21st Centuries,” no. 122041100088-9
About the Author
S. V. Kozlov
State Public Scientific and Technological Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Sergey V. Kozlov, Candidate of Sciences (History)
WoS Researcher ID X-5659-2019
RSCI Author ID 616192
Novosibirsk
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Review
For citations:
Kozlov S.V. The Book as Media: Key Approaches in Western Social Sciences and Humanities. Vestnik NSU. Series: History and Philology. 2026;25(6):129-135. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.25205/1818-7919-2026-25-6-129-135
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